If you were guaranteed 1,200 a month income…

[Tja1]

Would you give up full time work and a stressful job for something low key with minimal pay and minimal responsibility?

I’m 43. I’ve been a single parent for several years. It’s been a struggle. I have income guaranteed of 1,200 a month. My mortgage is 980 so this income only really covers that and council tax.

I have around 2k spare a month at the moment that I can put away after all expenses but my mental health and general health is very bad due to the pressures of the job. I am seriously considering just throwing the towel in and getting a job two days a week doing something basic (I can’t go part time in my current industry), just something that pays the extra bills and a bit of spending money.

has anyone done this? Is it crazy? I’m so depleted and I’ve exhausted all other options including sick leave, annual leave and therapy. I just want to get off the treadmill.

@TheMumEdit how much would you be happy with before going part time?!

I think there are other options you could consider too:

• is this possibly Perimenopause burnout, maybe ask for HRT?
• you could speak to your current manager to ask for help
• take time off for stress in the short term
• look at other companies which could make you happier etc

OP you say you've exhausted sick leave? Is that really legally the case though? Could you take a month off for stress whilst you regroup, have a breathing space and use the time to look for another job? If you have that option it's definitely what I'd do.
If not, I'd probably just jack in the job and wing it for a bit. Nothing like being skint to motivate yourself. You could get some side hustles going - dog walking, pet sitting, cleaning, ironing. Lots of things you can do to earn money whilst also looking for part time work at the same time. The only spanner in the works is your mortgage though so you do need to think about whether or not you're going to need to renew that any time soon.
Good luck whatever you decide. .

That would depend on a lot of factors like;

• how long is left on your mortgage
• would you be willing to downsize to release equity and put into an annuity?
• what sort of lifestyle do you have/want?
• would you be eating into the capital of the trust or would that £1,200 always be there through your retirement to death?

To be honest that's probably going to be my income when I retire in 7 years time, I was trying to work out if I could survive on this, I dont have a mortgage anymore but I pay £120 on gas and electric, £40 on water/sewage, £200 on council tax, £15 on TV Licence, £280 on food, and then my property is leasehold and although normally only £35 a month, as an owner when they do large work I have twice had to pay £4000 (£400 a month for 10 months), I worked out I would have about £150 a month for presents, clothes, dentist, holidays etc so will probably have to get a part time job when I retire to be able to have the life I want.

To answer your question though, I think your mental health and happiness is worth more than a highly paid stressful career so a part time job for 2 days a week sounds good.

I was once a secretary on £14K a year and I've earned well over £200K a year for a couple of decades. I can tell you the £14K job was way more stressful - so little autonomy, so little respect, so utterly dull and relentless, so many assholes to deal with treating me awfully. My point is this: please don't equate low salary with low stress.
Take a step back and plan the way out of your stress. Having very little money is not the answer.

That’s an unanswerable question, it would all depend on how long you were intending to stay working PT for, the next year or the next 10+ years etc

I would at some point but probably not at 43. But I'm currently saving quite hard with the intention to do something like this in my mid 50s.

Check it won't be out of the frying pan into the fire. If it's going to be weird short notice shifts, pressure to do more hours, that sort of thing.

Absolutely not.

Firstly, part-time jobs to fit in around child-raising aren't that easy to find.

Secondly, minimum wage jobs can still have responsibility and be stressful. Add to that you get treated like shit in many of them by both your employer and any clients/customers you need to deal with. Wouldn't do this.

Sounds like you need a break and a reset, could you take a 6 months sabbatical?

If your mortgage is 980 could you downsize? If you can reduce costs then having your money from the trust and another job might not be more feasible. And I agree don't equate a lower paid job with less stress. Some People I know in shops and cafes on NMW are still stressed, nasty bosses, nasty customers, too much work and not enough time to get it done.

Do you have sick pay at your current workplace? Could you get signed off for a bit and take stock. You sound pretty desperate and it’s not good to make big decision like this when you’re in a stress.

Or could you request to go down to 4 days at your current employer?

Will it be easy enough to get another job in the industry youre in in the future if you need to? I'd probably look for a job three days a week just to get a bit more money. Have a spare 2k each month then dropping down to total income of only 2000, 2100, is a big drop.

Would it be possible for you to reduce your job to part time with a job share or do you want away from it completely?

I would find a less stressful job that paid more than 700 a month. I'm sure there are jobs that pay at least 1200-1500 month that aren't demanding.

I was asking myself a similar question (thought without the trust behind me), and I am afraid that the low paying low responsibility job would be annoying/demanding/hard work, just for lot less money.
Part time in your industry/something adjacent would be the best way

No I wouldn't.

Don't compromise when it comes to jobs. There is something out there that will give you literally everything you need rather than trading one disadvantage for another.

Have you considered downsizing to a smaller house in order to reduce your mortgage? The thought of having to service a mortgage of nearly £1k a month on a low (and diminishing in value) income would keep me awake at night.

What if inflation rises again? Interest rates would increase and the value of your income from the trust would decrease.

Suggest that you speak to a financial advisor before quitting your job

43 is essentially very young to retire from the workplace

If you work, you may receive free contributions from your employer into your work pension, plus life insurance & other benefits

Can you work until your children are 18 ?

Is your state retirement age 68 ?

If you do not work, you can only pay £2880 per year into a SIPP, although you would receive tax relief on top. However I believe that you would not be able to access this pension until 57 at the earliest

Absolutely no point running yourself into the ground and becoming miserable if you have enough coming in to keep a roof over your head and bills paid. You never know what's around the corner but once the essentials are paid for I think peace of mind and quality time with friends and family is worth so much more than accumulating more stuff/ bigger house etc.

If you found out tomorrow you didn't have long left, would you regret how you are spending your time now? If you looked back on your life in 30 years time, would you regret not having spent more time in a job you hate?

You do need to consider retirement plans and also how old your child is / how close to financial independence they are and their plans (college/ uni etc). Can you downsize or reduce your mortgage payments to give you more of a buffer?

I’ve done this, OP. It was the best thing for me and I am 100% happier. I now work four mornings a week and it feels like I am permanently on holiday.

Is there a middle ground?

I think you should change your lifestyle, but why not look for working 3/4 days as week in a less stressful job. You’ll still have half the week off work and try get help to manage any stress. If you needed help with house or garden or childcare you’d have a bit extra money from the extra day.

If I had a guaranteed £1200 I would want at least 150 locked into a pension.
At 43 at least 50k in accessible savings I could access to I retire.

I'd be bored silly. With that savings buffer, I'd retrain and do another full-time job that was less stressful. Or part-time but more than 2 days a week. At 43, that's a loooong time to be filling 5 days a week if you're not ill or something. How old are you kids? I'd want to keep earning to help mine through uni and other things like house deposits. You're clearly capable, just tired, so take a breath and do something else but don't give up to the extent you're talking about. A PP talked about feeling permanently on holiday, but other people would get depressed by it.